Kimberly-Clark (NASDAQ:KMB) Trading Up 4.7% – Time to Buy?

Kimberly-Clark Corporation (NASDAQ:KMB) was up 4.7% during mid-day trading on Friday . The stock traded as high as $98.66 and last traded at $98.9490. Approximately 3,734,679 shares traded hands during trading, a decline of 30% from the average daily volume of 5,327,527 shares. The stock had previously closed at $94.47.

Key Headlines Impacting Kimberly-Clark

Here are the key news stories impacting Kimberly-Clark this week:

• Positive Sentiment: Jim Cramer highlighted Kimberly-Clark as an attractive staple stock, saying he likes it partly because of its pending merger with Kenvue, which may have helped boost investor interest in the name. Article
• Positive Sentiment: Investors are also focusing on Kimberly-Clark’s recent conference presentation and its upcoming dividend schedule, which can attract income-oriented buyers and support the stock during periods of market volatility. Article
• Positive Sentiment: The broader move into consumer staples also appears to be helping, as investors rotate toward more defensive sectors amid sharp weakness in the overall market. Article
• Neutral Sentiment: Kimberly-Clark’s recent conference appearance and prior earnings update reinforced steady fundamentals, but there was no single new operating headline driving the move. Article

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

Several analysts have issued reports on KMB shares. UBS Group upped their price target on shares of Kimberly-Clark from $105.00 to $106.00 and gave the company a “neutral” rating in a research report on Wednesday, April 29th. Deutsche Bank Aktiengesellschaft cut their price target on shares of Kimberly-Clark from $110.00 to $109.00 and set a “hold” rating for the company in a research report on Monday, March 30th. Wells Fargo & Company cut their price target on shares of Kimberly-Clark from $110.00 to $100.00 and set an “equal weight” rating for the company in a research report on Wednesday, April 8th. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c-)” rating on shares of Kimberly-Clark in a research note on Friday, March 27th. Finally, Piper Sandler lowered their price objective on shares of Kimberly-Clark from $133.00 to $114.00 and set an “overweight” rating for the company in a research note on Friday, March 13th. Four analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating, eleven have issued a Hold rating and one has given a Sell rating to the company. According to MarketBeat, Kimberly-Clark presently has an average rating of “Hold” and a consensus price target of $114.93.

Kimberly-Clark Price Performance

The company has a quick ratio of 0.55, a current ratio of 0.77 and a debt-to-equity ratio of 3.38. The firm’s fifty day moving average price is $97.47 and its two-hundred day moving average price is $101.06. The stock has a market capitalization of $32.88 billion, a PE ratio of 15.55, a PEG ratio of 4.44 and a beta of 0.28.

Kimberly-Clark (NASDAQ:KMB) last posted its earnings results on Tuesday, April 28th. The company reported $1.97 EPS for the quarter, beating analysts’ consensus estimates of $1.93 by $0.04. The firm had revenue of $4.16 billion during the quarter, compared to the consensus estimate of $4.09 billion. Kimberly-Clark had a return on equity of 152.79% and a net margin of 12.80%.The company’s quarterly revenue was up 2.7% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period in the prior year, the company earned $1.93 EPS. On average, equities analysts predict that Kimberly-Clark Corporation will post 7.48 earnings per share for the current year.

Kimberly-Clark Announces Dividend

The company also recently announced a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Thursday, July 2nd. Stockholders of record on Friday, June 5th will be given a dividend of $1.28 per share. This represents a $5.12 dividend on an annualized basis and a dividend yield of 5.2%. The ex-dividend date is Friday, June 5th. Kimberly-Clark’s dividend payout ratio is currently 80.38%.

Insider Buying and Selling

In other news, insider Katy Chen sold 1,596 shares of the stock in a transaction that occurred on Monday, May 4th. The stock was sold at an average price of $95.34, for a total transaction of $152,162.64. Following the completion of the transaction, the insider directly owned 8,362 shares in the company, valued at approximately $797,233.08. This represents a 16.03% decrease in their position. The transaction was disclosed in a legal filing with the Securities & Exchange Commission, which can be accessed through the SEC website. The sale was made to cover tax withholding obligations related to the vesting of equity awards. Also, VP Andrew Scribner sold 4,095 shares of the stock in a transaction on Wednesday, May 6th. The shares were sold at an average price of $98.00, for a total value of $401,310.00. The disclosure for this sale is available in the SEC filing. Insiders have sold a total of 7,096 shares of company stock valued at $689,687 over the last quarter. Corporate insiders own 0.75% of the company’s stock.

Institutional Trading of Kimberly-Clark

Several hedge funds and other institutional investors have recently bought and sold shares of the stock. Greatmark Investment Partners Inc. raised its holdings in Kimberly-Clark by 2.9% during the 4th quarter. Greatmark Investment Partners Inc. now owns 3,533 shares of the company’s stock valued at $356,000 after buying an additional 100 shares during the period. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund raised its holdings in Kimberly-Clark by 0.3% during the 4th quarter. Oregon Public Employees Retirement Fund now owns 37,999 shares of the company’s stock valued at $3,834,000 after buying an additional 100 shares during the period. New Mexico Educational Retirement Board raised its holdings in Kimberly-Clark by 0.7% during the 4th quarter. New Mexico Educational Retirement Board now owns 15,093 shares of the company’s stock valued at $1,523,000 after buying an additional 100 shares during the period. AdvisorNet Financial Inc raised its holdings in Kimberly-Clark by 18.3% during the 1st quarter. AdvisorNet Financial Inc now owns 665 shares of the company’s stock valued at $64,000 after buying an additional 103 shares during the period. Finally, Core Wealth Partners LLC grew its position in Kimberly-Clark by 2.6% in the 4th quarter. Core Wealth Partners LLC now owns 4,352 shares of the company’s stock valued at $439,000 after acquiring an additional 112 shares during the last quarter. Hedge funds and other institutional investors own 76.29% of the company’s stock.

About Kimberly-Clark

Kimberly-Clark Corporation is a U.S.-based multinational manufacturer of personal care and consumer tissue products. The company develops, produces and markets a range of consumer brands and professional products, including facial and bathroom tissues, disposable diapers and training pants, feminine care, incontinence products and workplace hygiene solutions. Known for consumer-facing names such as Kleenex, Huggies, Kotex, Cottonelle and Scott, as well as professional offerings under Kimberly-Clark Professional and KleenGuard, the company supplies goods to retail, healthcare and institutional customers.

Founded in 1872 in Neenah, Wisconsin, Kimberly-Clark has expanded from its 19th-century paper-making roots into a global household and workplace products company.